It has grown into a bit of a tradition; every few years Hardware.Info publishes a workshop on building your own PC step by step. The last time we have done one was in 2011, so we thought it was time for an update.

You'll occasionally encounter them as case mods: desks in which you can install a computer. If you aren't all that handy with a lathe and dremel, but are very much interested in owning such a desk, then Lian Li might have the thing for you. Their DK-01X is a desk in which you can install a complete system – but it doesn't come cheap. We were one of the few tech publications lucky enough to receive a review sample.

At the start of June, Intel introduced the Broadwell generation processors for desktops. For laptops, these 5th generation Core processors have already been available for a while, for desktops it proved to be unclear if Intel would make chips from this generation available at all. This has now finally happened with the Core i7 5775C and Core i5 5675C. Both processors are mainly special because of the integrated graphics card: the Intel Iris Pro Graphics 6200 is a so-called "GT3e" versio...
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More pixels on the same surface for more work space and a sharper image - that's what 24 inch 'wide quad hd' or WQHD-displays promise us. We have now tested three models with those attributes, produced by Acer, ASUS and BenQ. The panel we used is the same, but the results certainly are not.

That the fastest processors are currently made by Intel is not really a secret, but what is the best choice when you want to spend up to £ 50, £100 or £150? To answer that question we conducted a megatest of 57 current AMD and Intel CPUs.

Grand Theft Auto V, also known as GTA V, appears to be turning into the most popular PC game of 2015. Back when we first published our performance review featuring 23 GPUs, we immediately received the request if we could also publish scores that one would obtain when using mid-range CPUs, which we did in a second performance review. Comments on this review led to yet another question: how well does the game run on an AMD FX processor? To answer this question, we once again instructed the Hardware.Info Test Lab crew to work their magic on this game for a couple of days.

We previously published a performance review of Grand Theft Auto V, in which we tested the game using 23 graphics cards, ranging from an entry-level Radeon R7 240 to an ultra high-end GeForce GTX Titan X. We ran the tests on our standard test system for graphics cards that is based on an Intel Core i7-5960X, which of course is the fastest desktop processor out there. However, many readers asked us if we could also test how well more conventional (and affordable) processors hold up. Your wish is our command! Given the high amount of interest in this game, we performed another set of benchmarks, featuring both an Intel Core i5 and an Intel Core i3 processor.

Around two months ago, the PC version of GTA V was released at long last. Where owners of a PlayStation 3 or an Xbox 360 have been able to play this game since September 2013, PC gamers had to wait no less than nineteen months for their turn. Admittedly, GTA V for PC is much more than just a simple console port: the game's graphics have been upgraded substantially, and as a result, the game looks much better on PC than it does on any console. Assuming you have the right graphics card, that is. As you're no doubt used to by now, we've once again extensively tested which graphics card you need to play this game with all bells and whistles enabled. 23 graphics cards, 3 resolutions, and 2 quality presets: everything you need to know!

An energy friendly HTPC or a monster gaming gaming PC: with the latest generation of mini ITX motherboards anything is possible in a small form factor case. We tested a total of 15 ITX boards for Intel Haswell processors, in a price range of 50 to 200 pounds.

Last week AMD introduced the complete new line up of the Radeon R7/R9 300-series. However, all these new models are based on existing technology and GPUs. Today AMD is presenting their newest top end model based on a completely new chip. In our review we put the Fiji-based card through its paces.

Released fifteen years after the first Total War game, Attila is the ninth entry in the Total War series. Within these games, which combine turn-based and realtime strategy, you play the role of both an emperor and a general. You must keep your position at the top by not making any political and economical mistakes, while simultaneously ensuring that your armies emerge victorious from the countless battles that they engage in. This requires you to keep your generals and army units alive, all...
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Now that the prices of SSDs have dropped to well below 50 cents per GB, we expect that only few Hardware.Info readers will still want to use a conventional hard drive as their primary storage device. We still can't quite live without them, however, because with prices of around 5 cents per GB, hard drives still remain a much cheaper way of storing large amounts of data.
Hard drives haven't seen all that much innovation during the last few years; manufacturers are primarily focusing on increasin...
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A fast refresh rate and excellent colour reproduction is normally a combination that is hard to come by. Most gamers know the trade off; for a minimum in "ghosting" you will have to sacrifice accurate colour reproduction. With the arrival of 144 Hz monitors that sport a IPS panel this trade off is no longer necessary, Acer was the first manufacturer that could provide us with such a screen and we have tested the Predator XB270HUbprz.

The home server. It's subject to heated debate on Hardware.Info. Opinions differ widely on subjects like the necessity for keeping the design compact, the advantage of hot-swap bays, acceptable energy consumption, how much CPU power is needed, what type of storage and so on. It's safe to say that the "ideal home server" does not exist, because its intended use differs widely among our readers.
This doesn't mean that we can't provide a good guide to effective home servers. There are two option...
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Last year, Seagate announced their 8 TB Archive HDD, and as of recently, this drive has actually become available through retail channels. It features both a very high storage capacity and a relatively low price per gigabyte. How did Seagate manage to accomplish this? And would the Archive HDD be a good choice for your PC or NAS? Read all about it in this review.

The Deluxe edition of the Home Server distinguishes itself from the standard home server by its smaller size and more powerful hardware. That makes the server also suitable for using the ZFS file system. This server is more versatile and takes up less space, and is a lot more expensive.
Please note: the PC Buyer’s Guide is compiled based on independent component tests performed by Hardware.Info. If no new, superior products are released that should replace one or more of the components, the...
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This computer system is specifically geared towards gaming. That means a PC with a high-end graphics card and a processor that is fast enough to support the GPU.
The rest of the configuration needs to be balanced as well. Since many gamers also enjoy overclocking their PC to improve performance, it is also important to choose a motherboard and memory that is suitable for this. Keep in mind that you will pay extra for that overclocking potential.
Having the right accessories is also importa...
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We tested 42 USB 3.0 memory sticks with a storage capacity of at least 32 GB. As one might have expected, transfer speeds vary greatly, ranging from painfully slow to lightning fast. Which one should you buy?

After a few years in which little happened in the area of PC displays, the 4K revolution is finally taking place. Graphics cards have to render four times as many pixels to drive a 4K display, while the game textures are only getting more detailed. In short: you need real horse power to game in 4K.
A fast processor and especially a graphics card is a must. For now, you even need a couple of the latter. However, the rest of the configuration needs to be balanced as well. Since many gamers pref...
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